Spatial AI startup Augmodo raises $21M to expand beyond retail stores

Spatial artificial intelligence startup Augmodo Inc. said today it has raised $21 million in an impromptu funding round that lifts its valuation to $350 million.

TQ Ventures served as the lead investors, with participation from Lerer Hippeau, Jefferson River Capital, Arena Holdings, Chemist Warehouse, New Fare, Interlace and Webb Investment Network

The Seattle-based startup is led by Chief Executive Ross Finman, who told GeekWire in an interview that the company wasn’t planning to raise additional capital. But with so many investors showing an interest in applying the company’s technology in new applications, it decided to accept their money and put it to use expanding its platform.

Augmodo originally built its technology for grocery stores. It consists of a small device known as a Smartbadge that’s worn by employees as they walk around the store performing their work. The devices are programmed to constantly scan the store’s shelves without interrupting the worker in order to help managers keep track of their inventory. It also creates a real-time store layout that the startup calls a “Realogram,” and this is what allows store managers to ensure they never run out of stock for a particular item.

However, it turns out that the same technology can be applied to many other applications besides store inventory management, and it’s now rapidly being deployed in alternative environments, including warehouses, manufacturing plants, hospitals, automotive environments and for maintenance work. Finman told GeekWire that the company has only had to make a few alterations to its technology to adapt to these different use cases.

“Fundamentally, someone grabbing a wrench in an automotive factory isn’t that different from someone grabbing a Cheerios box,” he said. “It turns out that the algorithms work pretty well across all of those.”

Having realized the larger potential for vision AI technology, Finman said Augmodo has pivoted and now sees itself as a physical AI company. “Our whole mission statement is AI system for the physical workforce,” he insisted. “Everyone’s focused on the 20% of the workforce that’s knowledge work, and we’re focused on the 80% of the workforce that’s physical work.”

Augmodo has witnessed rapid growth over the last year, with revenue increasing tenfold over that period. According to Finman, the platform now maps more than 186 million square feet of new retail spaces every month, and he believes that figure can reach 1 billion square feet monthly by the end of the year.

At the same time, many of the startup’s existing clients have started deploying the technology in their warehouses and for applications such as facility maintenance and operational audits. That’s helping to drive growth at a rate of between 50 and 100 new store locations per month.

The technology is evolving, too. The Smartbadge has been made much lighter than before and given more functionality. For instance, it can be used as a walkie-talkie and a digital identity display for employees, and it even has an optional panic button. With these new additions, it means employees no longer have to carry around multiple devices, Finman said.

Going forward, Augmodo will use the funds to enhance its computer vision and machine learning capabilities and hire more engineers so it can process much larger volumes of data from different industries. The company is also determined to expand its global footprint and sell its tech in different markets.

TQ Ventures Managing Partner Andrew Marks said Augmodo is effectively modernizing what is one of the largest labor workforces in the world. “Our strong retail relationships combined with Augmodo’s innovative tech results in a dynamic and strategic partnership,” he said. “It helps retailers and customers provide immediate value today, solving out of stocks, inventory visibility and in-store tasks, while layering in the spatial data groundwork for the future of retail.”

Images: Augmodo